Happy Tuesday! How was your long weekend?!? Did anyone have to work? I'm sorry if you did! It always makes the weekend go by so much faster when you need to fit in chores around working! 

Is anyone training for their first marathon this Fall?!? Are you excited/ nervous/ anxious/ overwhelmed/ exhausted? I'm pretty sure I felt ALL of these before my first marathon, but don't worry- if you committed to your training schedule you will get to that finish line (and then be prepared to have it change your entire life)!

I wanted to share with you some tips that I learned along the way after training for 6 marathons! Let me know what tips work best for you and training for 26.2! 

• Follow your training plan. Stick with it, but give yourself grace if you miss a day (or two). It's not going to break your marathon goal if you miss a few days. I actually missed an entire WEEK during training for my fourth marathon and still made it to the start line (and finish line)
• Dial in your pre long-run nutrition. Try a few different things and find what works best for you. Will you get up 3 hours before your scheduled time to run or are you able to eat something substantial within an hour of running? Does oatmeal or cereal or a bagel make you feel best out on the run (or maybe it's something totally different). Test it out and be open to trying new things! 
• Know that you WILL have bad training runs. Accept it and try to take something away from your less-than-ideal training run. Maybe you were able to still mentally push through slower paces or you still got your mileage. There's always a silver lining! 

• Find what fuel (during the run) works best for you. I started with Gatorade because that was what I read was best for training for a marathon, but later I branched out to Honey Stinger and found that worked better for me. I also started with taking gels every 6 miles, but have recently found that every 4.5 miles works better for you. No one person is the same, so remember that your fueling strategy should work was best for YOU. 
• Figure out what you're going to wear on race day and then TRY IT OUT. It's pretty painful to have all the chafing after you race, so find out ahead of time when something rubs you the wrong way and use bodyglide (or KT tape or deodorant) to minimize your risk of chafing. 
• Remember to hydrate and refuel after every run. I definitely did NOT do this when training for my first marathon. I justified running 20 miles to eating a gillion junk snacks throughout the day and definitely didn't drink enough water. Fuel is just as important as running. If you're fueling correctly, you're putting yourself at risk to developing injury/ not improving/ getting sick etc. 

• Switch out your shoes often. Try not to run in the same pair of sneakers two days in a row. 
• Run at varied paces. I definitely didn't do this either when I was training for my first 26.2 I had no idea what speedwork was or "easy pace". Almost every run was done as fast as I could. 
• Know what type of terrain your marathon will be on and try to simulate your terrain during training. If your race is downhill, try to do some long runs on either downhill terrain or a negative incline on the treadmill. If it's anticipated to be hilly or there's a large hill at mile 20, try your best to simulate something like that. I love treadmills for simulating what my race course will be like. 
• Train when your race start time is. Training for the Vegas Marathon that starts at 4:30pm? Try to get in some long runs that start at 4 or later. Simulated race-day training runs are the best way to prepare!

• Know your goals for the race and write them down. Say them outloud. Share with others. Make it something that you think about and see yourself accomplishing everyday. Maybe it's something as simple as visualizing yourself as crossing the finish line or seeing that time goal on the clock or getting that first hug from your friend/family member/ person. 
• Make time to do some strength training. Whether you join in two pilates or barre classes a week or meet up with a personal trainer or are able to do 20 minutes of strength training a few times a week. Make it a priority to help you get stronger and stave off injuries.
• Know that being tired (mentally & physically) is part of the marathon training game. I wasn't ready for how tired I felt and how long training was. It's a big time commitment and will consume A LOT of your energy. Training for your 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc. marathons gets easier. 

What else would you add to the list?

Anyone training for their first marathon out there?

Best part about the long weekend?!?